


Make Your Bed (And Lie In It)

by laughinghyena



Category: Ushio to Tora | Ushio and Tora
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, Interspecies Awkwardness, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-27
Updated: 2016-02-27
Packaged: 2018-05-23 11:41:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6115363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laughinghyena/pseuds/laughinghyena
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If Ushio can't go up, Tora is coming down with him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Make Your Bed (And Lie In It)

**Author's Note:**

> Okay...so! My first thing here! Sorry this is super short... I haven't written in quite a while. Any constructive criticism would be highly appreciated, as would be tips! I really apologize if anything is out of character; I may have gotten a bit excited writing this. 
> 
> Inspired by the Tumblr post:  
> "Couple aesthetic: the short one tries to kiss the tall one, but they can’t reach up; so they gently stand on their toes, take the tall one’s neck... ...and DRAG THE MOTHERFUCKER DOWN. IF I CAN’T GO UP, YOU’RE GOING DOWN WITH ME."

Things have changed.

The boy looked different, smelled different, acted different. He's gotten a bit taller, and he's grown sturdy and strong around an honorable frame. He's matured, he was forced to, unchangeable circumstances urging him into manhood the closer Hakumen's time bomb ticked to explosion. There was no room for boyishness. Perhaps it was missed; the slightest, a small yearning barely gracing the tail of short-lived thoughts. It wasn't as fun this way. The boy smiled, but Tora couldn't escape the sense of anxiety behind it, no matter how brave of a front the foolish human barricaded himself with.

Ruminating on the subject too long was uncomfortable; with a minutely twitching tail and ears pinned, invisible, in his mass of shaggy mane. He'd become accustomed to the human smell of this house -- almost comforted by its familiarity -- but such was bittersweet. His tolerance was growing too strong; tugging at his chest and making his ears burn. Hadn't the spear trapped him long enough? First it was physical, then it was obligation... and now it was... ? Tora didn't have a word to describe it, only a snout-crinkled and teeth-bared gesture. It was vulnerability. 

"Tora."

He turns only his head to gaze, broken from the solitary thinking. His name is said with less frustration or fervor than usual; its a greeting, acknowledgement. Pupilless eyes narrow, preceding rough inquiry: "What?"

Sharp looks and a sharper callout had Tora bristling. Ushio pulled the spear from his side, sloppily wrapped in cloth, and pressed the blunted tip into his companion's flank, knowing fully what to expect. Unbeknownst to Tora, their lines of thought have been parallel-- the boy, before he closed his eyes each night, grappled with the thought that he was getting too close to the enemy. Or, rather, becoming too attached to an asset -- Tora was more than just a troublesome ghost. Friend wasn't a fitting term for him; as tense as their bond could be, it felt like something more, no matter how many times Ushio was bombarded with threats to be devoured by the next morning. Seeing Tora so affected was worrying-- as if he needed any more problems piled on top of what they were already about to face. 

"You've been so mopey lately. What's wrong with you?" 

The glint in Ushio's eyes is there, and Tora responds to the prodding with a growl rumbling from his throat and his mouth ajar in a threat. 

"I'm fine, the hell are you talking about?" 

"You look pitiful. It's seriously getting on my nerves."

As if Ushio didn't get on his! The cluster of thoughts provoking him earlier vanished in a cloud of chagrin as Tora lifted himself to his hind paws, towering above his partner, squaring his shoulders and letting his irritation slip through the cracks. His arms felt heavy with the desire to scratch and lash out-- the first violent desires he's truly felt towards the teenager in a long time. Just a swing would put Ushio in his place...

How the muscles tense across his face and tighten in his forearms are a clear indicator that something is wrong. Tora wasn't cowering to the spear after a thwack as he typically would, and the urge to cuff him across the broadness of his skull was very real and very tempting. He brought his weapon in front of himself, barring his chest, a talisman of protection and a clear sign to the monster that he was engaging in a losing battle. A feeling buried in his gut told Ushio that no harm would come. 

As close as Tora would come -- breath hot, fangs shining, features malicious -- the human was right. As frustrated and caged and scared as the yokai was, he wouldn't have done it anyways. With a moment of sudden thought, impulse crept through his veins and Ushio threw his spear aside, showing his underbelly and making himself an easy morsel. All because he knew Tora wouldn't do it. The ancient weapon clattered to the floor, skidding aside out of reach of either of them, rendering its human wielder open to any attack. 

No attack would come. 

Tora reeled back, confusion stretching across his countenance. Violently he pulls away from the human, questioning motives and deciphering the clashing wants of each half of his head -- does he ask or does he pounce? No matter the answer, it was too late to take any action, as Ushio had opted to surprise him again. He stood on the front of his feet, arching up and lengthening his spine as far as he could -- but not far enough to be face-to-face with his supernatural acquaintance. Tora was too shocked to throw the assailant off, and in the yokai's momentary pause, Ushio could throw his arms around Tora's furry neck. The pressure on his nape and the pulling at his fur gave Tora no other choice but to go down, bending dangerously close to the teen, their exhales so close that they could intermingle. Tora's eyes widened far, and he began to protest--

\--but Ushio moved in too quickly, trapping protests between them. Short lived as it was -- and their teeth clinked together, their lips sloppily aligned in a strong but short-lived kiss He was blushing furiously, between the warmth Tora naturally emanated and the blaze eating him up from the inside to become clear in the redness of his face, Ushio felt so hot that he had to pull away. Tora's internal monologue halted to a stop, so overloaded with quieries and foul interjections, but he stayed in place. His eyes had been open, he saw the hue of Ushio's skin and the way his skin wrinkled just so at the edges of his tightly shut eyes, felt his breath and his heartbeat accelerate by leaps and bounds. The sound of Ushio's heartbeat was wracking him like a drum; and Tora himself felt disturbingly similar. He looked as if he'd been electrified; every hair on his body fluffed, his mane and tail in a poofy disarray. No words. No apology. 

That feeling...  
That feeling was...

Ushio's arms were still there, but Tora toppled, bringing him and the human to a flustered mess, an entanglement of limbs and paws splayed across the ground. Tora still couldn't give the sensation a name. He had to feel it again, in spite of the embarassed expletives rushing from Ushio's mouth and his attempts to struggle away. They'd be silenced in moments as Tora mimicked the act, his embrace too airtight to let anything through as the favor was returned.

Ushio could have sworn he heard Tora _purr_.


End file.
